


Out of Sync

by Wolves_of_Innistrad



Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst with a Happy Ending, M/M, Pre-Slash, Soulmate-Identifying Timers, Temporarily Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-07
Updated: 2019-11-07
Packaged: 2021-01-24 19:23:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,934
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21343429
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wolves_of_Innistrad/pseuds/Wolves_of_Innistrad
Summary: Buck has been waiting all hsi life for his Timer to go off, even if he's not supposed to meet his soulmate until he's in his 50's.Then his Timer suddenly turns back, shaving 20+ years off the date he's supposed to meet his soulmate.  Only his Soulmate's Timer doesn't go off when he sees him, it's already the color of someone with a soulmate.
Relationships: Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz
Comments: 34
Kudos: 584
Collections: Buck and Eddie are Soulmates





	1. Buck

When Evan Buckley turned 13 his timer appeared like everyone else. He ran to his sister, knowing better than to try to find even an ounce of concern or happiness from his parents.

“Maddie, Maddie! I got my timer, it finally came!”

Maddie was happy, grabbing her brother’s arm and looking it over, watching the numbers speed by.

And keep going.

And going.

After a few minutes, the numbers growing higher and higher little Evan began to panic.

“Maddie, make it stop! It’s going too high, Maddie!”

“It’s okay, it’s okay sometimes it just takes, takes a bit of time Evan.”

It kept going for a few more seconds, finally stopping at what seemed like an impossibly long number for Evan.

He was trying to do the math, but he was never good at that, Maddie managed it faster, sighing as she came to realize how long his wait was.

“How long is it Maddie? How old will I be when I meet my soulmate?”

Maddie didn’t say anything.

“Maddie?”

Maddie looked up at him with sad eyes.

“Somewhere in your fifties? 54 I think.”

“But that’s, that’s forever from now!”

“I’m sorry Evan. it’s, sometimes people have to wait a little longer.”

Buck knew his sister’s was further away too, but that didn’t help him over the years as people looked at his timer with sadness. Sure he wasn’t one of the unlucky few that had no soulmate, or who got a timer that started zeroed out in black meaning their soulmate had already died or had befallen some other fate that left them incompatible anymore.

Still, Buck felt that pain and loneliness through the years, even more once Maddie left and he was alone with their parents that never cared for him. He pushed it down as much as he could, tried to spin it to himself, saying it meant he could do what he wanted, was free to live out his life as he pleased for so much time. Sow his oats and not worry about being tied down.

Of course that, combined with his already poor relationships left him a sex addict with a host of other problems.

But things got better, he finally had a job, a family that cared for him, people to look out for him.

And then one day after a particularly hectic call that left the entire firehouse tired and worn out Buck was waiting in the kitchen for Bobby to reheat their cold dinner they’d left when his numbers started to move. At first he thought his eyes were playing tricks on him, but then it went again, slow and steady, rolling back and he stood up and shouted.

“My numbers are rolling back!”

Chimney and Hen ran over, watching them tick down, faster and faster as they went.

First it was a couple years, he’d meet his soulmate when he was 50, 45, 40, 30, it went faster until the years disappeared entirely. And even then it kept going, Buck falling into a chair, Chimney holding his arm steady for him as Hen was on his side and Bobby came over to peer down at what was happening.

“I’ve never see someone’s timer lose this much time at once, what is happening?” Hen was staring, eyes wide at the timer that still kept going.

“It means his soulmate just made a huge decision, something life changing that’s sped up their meeting!”

“That really happens? I thought it was just, like, a thing that happens in romantic comedies and shit?” Buck looked up at his friends, confused but so happy that he wasn’t going to be alone for so long. It had been so hard to stop looking for sex to fill that lonely void in his heart, and now he wouldn’t have to hold out as long.

“Getting a new job, moving cities, taking a random unplanned vacation, they say it’s rare to change fate, but it happens. You know, my timer actually changed right around when you showed up Buck, always thought of you as a bit of a good luck charm.”

“I didn't know that Chimney.” Buck smiled, watching as the time kept going, the months went back and back until they fell off and Buck almost gasped as the numbers began to slow down, rolling one by one.

They finally stopped at a time and Bobby clapped him on the back at the same time as Hen and Chimney were smiling down at him.

35 : 9 : 15 : 0 : 0

15 days, 9 hours, 35 minutes.

That’s all the time Buck had until he met his soulmate.

“You just shaved over 20 years off your soulmate timer. That’s wild.” Hen was still smiling, sitting down now and shaking her head.

Buck couldn’t speak, his hand was covering his mouth so he didn’t make any embarrassing sounds, but he was crying as he stared at his arm, comprehending how very little time until he was going to meet his perfect person.

The days moved liked molasses as he waited each day, doing extra exercise and being extra careful on calls to make sure he looked his best for his soulmate, preening constantly and watching his diet to the point that the entire firehouse was teasing him over it.

And then the day came and Buck was so nervous he thought he might throw up. And then traffic had been so fucking bad he was late to work, making him so angry from being cut off, nearly run off the road and shouted at he’d nearly forgotten his timer until he walked into the room and stared up at someone new.

As the words “Who’s that?” left Buck’s lips his timer went off and his mouth dropped in shock.

He’d never expected that his soulmate would be a man, but after seeing this guy he honestly couldn’t complain, he was the most handsome man he’d ever seen if he was honest.

Chimney and Hen were right there, looking between them with huge smiles on their faces.

“That’s Eddie Diaz, new recruit.” Chimney grabbed Buck’s shoulders and shook him. “I didn’t even know you were into dudes, Buck?”

Buck shook his head and laughed. “Neither did I. I mean, I guess I’ve never really thought of it but he’s...”

“Hot, I’m a lesbian and even I can see that.” Hen was laughing.

“Yeah, he is. Fuck.”

“Oh I bet there’s gonna be a lot of fucking.” Hen laughed, and Chimney nearly snorted at her joke.

“Shut up!” Buck was laughing, the thought that Eddie’s timer didn’t go off wasn’t scaring him yet, because Eddie still hadn’t looked his way.

“If you need a day off to rest your ass we’ll support you Buck.”

“Who said it’d be my ass Chimney? Also, funny.”

And so Buck knew Eddie Diaz was his soulmate.

The only problem was when they finally did meet face to face there was no timer ringing, no look of recognition on Eddie’s face.

Nothing.

And then Buck saw Eddie’s timer, it was zeroed out, but it was also red. Red meant you’d already found your soulmate and there was a problem. And that meant Eddie might be Buck’s soulmate, but Buck wasn’t Eddie’s soulmate and that made a pit grow in Buck’s stomach that felt like it might swallow him whole.

He wanted to cry, he wanted to scream and hit something, so he needled and pushed, tried to get a reaction out of Eddie, but there was nothing.

Buck made sure to swear Chimney, Hen and later Bobby to secrecy about it. He hated Eddie for this, for being an unrequited soulmate. It was so rare, but of course Buck who was always abandoned and uncared for would be saddled with an unrequited bond.

It was only later as he got to know Eddie that he slowly began to change his opinion.

Maybe it wasn’t an unrequited bond, maybe it was just a platonic bond. Those were rare too, but that meant he could still have Eddie, still be his friend, could still have his perfect person in his life, even if it wasn’t going to ever be anything romantic.

It was hard to swallow, but as time went on he fell more and more for Eddie, for Eddie’s son, he cared for the both of them and did everything he could to be part of their life. And it was enough.

Most of the time.

He tried to move on, tried to find a romantic aspect to his life now that he’d accepted his perfect person was just his best friend and nothing more.

Even if some nights he dreamed of Eddie.

Even if some nights he took himself in hand thinking of Eddie and then pretended he didn’t remember it happened the next time he looked Eddie’s way.

Sometimes things were good, and sometimes bad, but being without Eddie hurt more than anything else, and he understood that it was all he’d be able to have, all he could ever have, and he contented himself with that little slice of happiness he was allowed.

It was enough.

It had to be.


	2. Eddie/Buddie

The last year had been hard, Shannon returning, then passing away, so many injuries and so much drama, Buck’s stupid lawsuit, the tsunami, Christopher’s nightmares and the street fighting. It had been a lot for Eddie to deal with, but he’d moved past it all now, moved on and grown, learned, gotten better.

After all that, Eddie knew his family had grown, that they had his back and everything was good. He saw a bright future for himself and his kid, his family. And when he thought of Shannon that night, the pain was still there, but the yearning, the aching loneliness that had been there ever since she left him, since his soulmate had left him, was gone. For the first time he felt like he was getting over that pain, he was ready to move on, to try to be happy again. When he went to sleep he felt happy and relieved for the first time in a long time.

The next morning was a blur, trying to get dressed and get Christopher fed and ready for school before work. Eddie was so accustomed to the numbers on his arm, once an angry red and now a dull black after Shannon’s death that he didn’t even look at them.

Not until he was helping pour Chris’ milk and his son interrupted.

“Daddy, your numbers are moving!”

“What?”

“Your numbers daddy!” Christopher reiterated, reaching to point at Eddie’s forearm.

His heart felt like it stopped as his eyes quickly glanced to his arm and saw the numbers, watched one minute tick off and be replaced by another.

“No mames!”

“Dad you’re spilling the milk!”

At that moment he finally ripped his eyes away from the numbers and saw he was indeed spilling milk all over the table, having overfilled his son’s bowl.

“Chinga-” Eddie caught himself, switching their bowls so Christopher could eat before grabbing a towel and drying the table.

The entire time though he was just staring at the numbers, the new numbers he’d apparently gotten overnight that said he was going to meet his soulmate, a new soulmate, in a little over 2 hours.

This was crazy, he knew he’d felt like he was getting over the pain of Shannon, but that didn’t mean he was ready for someone new. Besides, he’d never heard of someone getting a second soulmate, at least not anyone he’d ever known personally.

Forgoing his own soggy cereal he went to the bathroom, trying a bit frantically to wash the numbers away, a futile last ditch effort to fight against fate.

Finally he splashed some water on his face and looked in the mirror, seeing the fear in his own eyes and knowing that he didn’t have any options. He could try to fight it, stay home and lock the doors, but somehow, some way it would happen, at least if he did it now he wouldn’t have potentially days or months of fear wondering when and how it was going to happen.

Swallowing down the bile that threatened to creep up his throat he returned to the kitchen, making sure Christopher was done, studiously avoiding any talk of his numbers by making sure his homework and everything else was done.

After he dropped Christopher off at school he headed in to work, looking for all intents and purposes like a dead man walking to the gallows.

“Dang Eddie, who shit in your cereal this morning?” Chimney asked, laughing as he walked up to him.

Without a word Eddie raised his arm, showing off the numbers that were now down to just a little over an hour.

“You got new numbers?!”

Eddie nodded, groaning when Hen came over, clearly having overheard.

“Eddie got new numbers? When did this happen?”

“This morning… Christopher noticed it at breakfast.”

“I’ve never seen anyone get numbers that fast except for like, kids that have already met their soulmate.” Hen was staring at the numbers, watching the minute move as they spoke.

“Hey maybe he has?” Chimney had a wide grin, staring at Hen who slapped him on the arm, both knowing exactly what he meant. Who he meant.

“It’s probably someone on a call. Dios, I’m going to have a new soulmate and it’s some random person that’s in the middle of danger or worse, injured I...” Eddie walked off, needing time to be alone.

The next hour seemed to drag on, he was sitting in the kitchen, staring at his phone as he researched second soulmates, how people called it a miracle, a blessing from fate to be lucky enough to find another soulmate after you’d lost one, whether it was to death or other immutable circumstances.

“2 minutes...” Eddie sighed as he said the words, eyes flicking from the door to the siren, there wasn’t time for a call anymore, that meant it was someone that was coming here. He had no idea who that could even be, but he wished Buck was here.

Buck would understand, he’d be here to help him figure this out and deal with the blowout like he always was. Buck was his best friend, one of the few people that made his day better just by being in it, and he wasn’t here.

Chimney and Hen sat on either side of him at the table, both eagerly watching the timer run down, Bobby off in the back trying to look like he wasn’t on pins and needles as well.

The minutes ended and it was down to seconds and Eddie’s throat closed up like he couldn’t breath. The stress was getting too hard to handle, his thoughts going wild.

_I can’t do this, I can’t deal with another soulmate. I can’t take the pain again. And what about Christopher, having to adjust to someone new in his life, see me love someone else. How can I do that to him, to myself. How can I deal with having to get to know someone all over again how can I-_

His thoughts were interrupted by a familiar voice ringing out.

“Sorry I’m late, the traffic was fucking horrible.” It was Buck coming through the door into the kitchen.

Eddie looked up right as the last second ticked off, and when his eyes landed on Buck the timer blared out, ringing for the entire firehouse to hear. The ringing felt deafening as his eyes kept staring at Buck who was staring back now in confusion.

And with no accompanying ringing of a timer going off for him as well.

That was too much, to know he had a second soulmate, that it was Buck, the one person that now that it happened, in that span of a moment, he felt like maybe it’d be okay if it was true, if it was him, only him, but Buck’s timer didn’t go off in unison. He didn’t say anything, just stared.

God, he was probably so embarrassed that this was happening to him. Eddie couldn’t think straight, he jerked up out of his seat, ignoring the pleas of the firefam, unable to hear anything besides the deafening solitary ring still reverberating in his mind before he pushed past Buck and ran down the stairs.

“What the fuck just happened?” Buck was looking behind him at where Eddie had just ran off.

“Eddie’s timer just went off.” Bobby was staring at Buck, wondering how he hadn’t understood.

“Timer on what?”

“His Timer!” Now it was Hen’s turn to lament how stupid Buck could be sometimes.

“But, Eddie, Eddie’s numbers are black, he lost his soulmate, it was Shannon...” Buck’s breath was coming short now, heart beating faster as he heard the others speak, thought of what just happened, the timing of it all.

“He got new numbers today! Just this morning!” Chimney was practically vibrating in his seat, yelling at Buck.

“He… He got new numbers? And it went off, when I came in?” Buck’s voice sounded like it was about to crack into a million pieces, face a mix of emotions, unable to settle on one distinctly.

“You’re his soulmate. And we know he’s yours. Go get him.” Bobby was smiling, wiping a tear from his eye because he knew how much it had hurt Buck to have an unrequited soulmate. Eddie had just needed a bit of time to catch up.

Buck didn’t say another word, he dropped his bag and raced down the stairs, finding Eddie right as he was getting in his car.

“Eddie! Eddie wait! Wait!”

“I’m sorry Buck, just ignore it. It’s nothing, it doesn’t mean anything just, just-”

Buck grabbed Eddie by the shoulders and spun him around, their eyes meeting, both wild and terrified.

There was one moment that felt like it contained multitudes, all the yearning, all the pain, all the growth and turmoil and tension of their entire friendship, rising in a crescendo until this moment.

And then Buck kissed Eddie like he would die if he didn’t, because it felt like he might if he waited even one more second.

Eddie made a shocked noise, then a sad broken sound as he kissed back.

Buck’s fingers scratched at Eddie's scalp, hand griping at Eddie’s neck and pulling him closer. Eddie’s hands were on Buck’s hips, at first tentative, as if he was going to push away, but now bruising as they kept the man close.

They kept going for a long time, longer than either had probably intended, only parting when both were panting for breath, Eddie’s forehead pressed to Buck’s, barely any space between them.

“But your Timer… it didn’t go off with mine...”

Buck smiled, kissing Eddie once more, because he could, because he got to have this now, after all this time.

“Eddie, my timer went off the first moment I ever saw you.”

Eddie met his eyes, looking lost.

“But, how? I didn’t hear it, I didn’t know, why did it come out of sync?”

“I don’t know. I thought, I thought it was unrequited, or a platonic soulmate, so I just didn’t say anything. But the first time I saw you, before we’d even met when I saw you from across the station, it went off.”

“And you’ve just been waiting for me all this time?”

Buck smirked, laughing as his hands moved to cup Eddie’s cheeks. “You’re worth waiting for. But I did try to move past it, because I thought you’d never see me that way but I… I knew I loved you for so long, even when I thought I wasn’t supposed to feel that way. You’ve always been my person. No matter what.”

“I’m glad you didn’t give up I… I don’t know why it took me so long.” Eddie was shaking, of all the things he’d expected when he’d seen those numbers, it being someone he already knew, his soulmate being Buck, was never even a consideration.

“It’s okay, you needed time, you weren’t ready. Are you ready?”

A soft sigh left Eddie, dropping his head to Buck’s chest for a moment.

“I didn’t think I was. I was terrified of what it meant, of having to find someone new to love, to let in, it’s so hard for me. But you...”

His hand reached up, thumb brushing over Buck’s cheek.

“God. Evan, you’d already made a place in my heart, in my life, in Christopher’s life. I was so worried about trying to make room for someone else, a new soulmate, a new love, but you’d already been living in my heart for so long this just feels like...”

“Like coming home?”

“Like coming home. Yeah.”

A chorus of cheers erupt from out of nowhere and Buck and Eddie turn, seeing the entire firefam screaming and yelling, even Bobby is whooping for them, everyone overjoyed.

“Did they know, all this time?”

“Yeah, I begged them not to tell you. At first because I was embarrassed that it was unrequited, but later because I decided I didn’t care, I just wanted you to be a part of my life and was scared you’d leave if you knew. I was okay with just being platonic, with you being my best friend as long as I got to still have you in my life.”

“But you wished for more.”

“God, every day.”

“I guess your wish finally came true.”

“All of them. Every wish I’ve ever had came true the day I met you. This is just a bonus.”

“Were you always this ridiculously sentimental?”

“Only when I’m in love.”

“With me?”

“Yes with you. I love you Eddie.”

“I love you Evan.”

There’s a silence and Buck smirks.

“Do I have to say, ‘I love you Edmundo’ now or?”

Eddie laughs, hitting Buck’s chest and shaking his head.

“You’re insufferable you know that?”

“I don’t know, I think I do quite enough suffering thank you.”

“Not anymore, not if I can help it.”

“You always help it.”

“Oh my God, we’re going to be that obnoxious couple aren’t we?”

“I for one cannot WAIT to rub this in Chimney and Maddie’s faces. Soulmate game on lock!”

“You’re so ridiculous. You’re lucky you’re pretty.”

“You think I’m pretty?”

“Are you… Are you blushing Buck?”

“I can’t help it my soulmate called me pretty!”

Buck buries his face in Eddie’s neck, feeling like his heart just grew ten sizes, big enough to break free from his chest but still not big enough to hold all the love he has for Eddie Diaz.

If they thought the firefam was excited about them being soulmates, they had no idea how to explain the look of pure, rapturous, unadulterated JOY that washed over little Christopher’s face when they told him.

“That means Buck can be my dad now too!”

“I, well, y-yeah, I guess...” Eddie looked to Buck, blushing furiously at the thought. Because sure they were soulmates, but they hadn’t even thought about marriage, even though that was the logical next step. They’d been a bit too preoccupied to consider it.

“Yesssssss! Daddy and papa Bucky!”

Eddie wasn’t prepared for the way Buck’s face contorted into both the biggest smile and the most ridiculous display of waterworks as he picked Christopher up and hugged him so tight. And he definitely wasn’t prepared for the way his heart felt like it might explode with all the love he felt for his son and his soulmate, feeling like it would shine from him like the sun.

**Author's Note:**

> I know there are soulmate aus already, I've read some great ones, but I hadn't seena Timer based on yet and I wanted to do it so I hope yall enjoy!
> 
> As always a big thanks to all my Wonderful Readers for all the comments, kudos and subs!


End file.
